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Chang CH, Drobotenko N, Ruocco AC, Lee ACH, Nestor A. Perception and memory-based representations of facial emotions: Associations with personality functioning, affective states and recognition abilities. Cognition 2024; 245:105724. [PMID: 38266352 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2024.105724] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2023] [Revised: 11/09/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 01/26/2024]
Abstract
Personality traits and affective states are associated with biases in facial emotion perception. However, the precise personality impairments and affective states that underlie these biases remain largely unknown. To investigate how relevant factors influence facial emotion perception and recollection, Experiment 1 employed an image reconstruction approach in which community-dwelling adults (N = 89) rated the similarity of pairs of facial expressions, including those recalled from memory. Subsequently, perception- and memory-based expression representations derived from such ratings were assessed across participants and related to measures of personality impairment, state affect, and visual recognition abilities. Impairment in self-direction and level of positive affect accounted for the largest components of individual variability in perception and memory representations, respectively. Additionally, individual differences in these representations were impacted by face recognition ability. In Experiment 2, adult participants (N = 81) rated facial image reconstructions derived in Experiment 1, revealing that individual variability was associated with specific visual face properties, such as expressiveness, representation accuracy, and positivity/negativity. These findings highlight and clarify the influence of personality, affective state, and recognition abilities on individual differences in the perception and recollection of facial expressions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chi-Hsun Chang
- Department of Psychology at Scarborough, University of Toronto, 1265 Military Trail, Scarborough, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada
| | - Natalia Drobotenko
- Department of Psychology at Scarborough, University of Toronto, 1265 Military Trail, Scarborough, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada
| | - Anthony C Ruocco
- Department of Psychology at Scarborough, University of Toronto, 1265 Military Trail, Scarborough, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada; Department of Psychological Clinical Science at Scarborough, University of Toronto, 1265 Military Trail, Scarborough, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada
| | - Andy C H Lee
- Department of Psychology at Scarborough, University of Toronto, 1265 Military Trail, Scarborough, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada; Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Centre, 3560 Bathurst St, North York, Ontario M6A 2E1, Canada
| | - Adrian Nestor
- Department of Psychology at Scarborough, University of Toronto, 1265 Military Trail, Scarborough, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada.
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Lavallee A, Pham TH, Gandolphe MC, Saloppé X, Ott L, Nandrino JL. Monitoring the emotional facial reactions of individuals with antisocial personality disorder during the retrieval of self-defining memories. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0268818. [PMID: 35675301 PMCID: PMC9176833 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0268818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2021] [Accepted: 05/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
While a deficit in the recognition of facial expression has been demonstrated in persons with antisocial personality disorder (ASPD), few studies have investigated how individuals with ASPD produce their own emotional facial expressions. This study examines the production of facial emotional expressions of male inpatients with ASPD in a forensic hospital compared with a control group as they retrieve autobiographical memories. This design constitutes a specific ecological experimental approach fostering the evocation of personal feelings. Two indicators characterizing the activation of facial expression were used: activation of emotional action units and emotional dominance. The results showed that individuals with ASPD 1) activated angrier facial expressions than control participants for both indicators, 2) displayed a higher dominance of angry facial expressions during the retrieval of positive self-defining memories than control participants and 3) recalled significant memories that were less associated with neutral facial states than the control sample, regardless of the valence of their memories. These findings highlight the core role of anger in ASPD and the possible development of pathological anger, which would distinguish trajectories toward anxious or mood disorders and trajectories characterized by external disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Audrey Lavallee
- SCALab, UMR CNRS 9193, University of Lille, Villeneuve d’Ascq Cedex, France
- Department of Legal Psychology, University of Mons, Mons, Belgium
- Groupement des Hôpitaux de l’Institut Catholique de Lille, Lille, France
| | - Thierry. H. Pham
- Department of Legal Psychology, University of Mons, Mons, Belgium
- Research Center in Social Defense, Tournai, Belgium
| | | | - Xavier Saloppé
- SCALab, UMR CNRS 9193, University of Lille, Villeneuve d’Ascq Cedex, France
- Research Center in Social Defense, Tournai, Belgium
- Psychiatric Hospital, Saint-Amand-les-Eaux, France
| | - Laurent Ott
- SCALab, UMR CNRS 9193, University of Lille, Villeneuve d’Ascq Cedex, France
| | - Jean-Louis Nandrino
- SCALab, UMR CNRS 9193, University of Lille, Villeneuve d’Ascq Cedex, France
- * E-mail:
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Kyranides MN, Petridou M, Gokani HA, Hill S, Fanti KA. Reading and reacting to faces, the effect of facial mimicry in improving facial emotion recognition in individuals with antisocial behavior and psychopathic traits. CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s12144-022-02749-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
AbstractIndividuals with antisocial behavior and psychopathic traits are characterized by deficits in processing facial expressions, which results in poor social adaptation and dysfunctional interpersonal relationships. However, it is not clear how individuals with varying levels of these traits differ in this emotional impairment and if these deficits are due to correctly identifying or reacting appropriately to facial expressions. The aim of the study was to examine how individuals with these traits recognized and responded to affective facial expressions by using FaceReader software (which analyses footage of faces) across different experimental conditions (imitation, suppression, and control). Imitating facial expressions was introduced to examine whether it could direct participants’ attention to the facial cues and improve participants’ performance on the facial task. A total of 643 individuals from the community were pre-screened and a sample (N = 107; M age = 21.08, SD = 1.55), differentiated on levels of antisocial personality disorder (APD) symptoms and psychopathic (PSY) traits, who were selected based on extreme scores (high/low), were invited to participate in the study. Individuals with higher levels of APD symptoms and PSY traits (APD + PSY) expressed more anger than other groups, while those in the APD-only group expressed more sadness, compared to other groups. Overall, participants were compliant in following the instructions to imitate facial expressions. However, only the group with predominantly APD symptoms and the group with combined symptoms (APD + PSY) showed improvement in their accuracy ratings specifically when instructed to imitate facial expressions, compared to when no instructions were provided. The study offers a promising direction for targeting deficits in facial emotion recognition, suggesting that the deficits found in individuals with behavioral problems (with and without psychopathic traits) can be improved by asking them to imitate facial expressions.
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Polek E, Jones PB, Fearon P, Brodbeck J, Moutoussis M, NSPN Consortium, Dolan R, Fonagy P, Bullmore ET, Goodyer IM. Personality dimensions emerging during adolescence and young adulthood are underpinned by a single latent trait indexing impairment in social functioning. BMC Psychiatry 2018; 18:23. [PMID: 29373967 PMCID: PMC5787243 DOI: 10.1186/s12888-018-1595-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2017] [Accepted: 01/07/2018] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Personality with stable behavioural traits emerges in the adolescent and young adult years. Models of putatively distinct, but correlated, personality traits have been developed to describe behavioural styles including schizotypal, narcissistic, callous-unemotional, negative emotionality, antisocial and impulsivity traits. These traits have influenced the classification of their related personality disorders. We tested if a bifactor model fits the data better than correlated-factor and orthogonal-factor models and subsequently validated the obtained factors with mental health measures and treatment history. METHOD A set of self-report questionnaires measuring the above traits together with measures of mental health and service use were collected from a volunteer community sample of adolescents and young adults aged 14 to 25 years (N = 2443). RESULTS The bifactor model with one general and four specific factors emerged in exploratory analysis, which fit data better than models with correlated or orthogonal factors. The general factor showed high reliability and validity. CONCLUSIONS The findings suggest that a selected range of putatively distinct personality traits is underpinned by a general latent personality trait that may be interpreted as a severity factor, with higher scores indexing more impairment in social functioning. The results are in line with ICD-11, which suggest an explicit link between personality disorders and compromised interpersonal or social function. The obtained general factor was akin to the overarching dimension of personality functioning (describing one's relation to the self and others) proposed by DSM-5 Section III.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ela Polek
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Herchel Smith Building, Forvie Site, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 0SZ UK
- School of Psychology, University College, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Peter B. Jones
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Herchel Smith Building, Forvie Site, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 0SZ UK
- NIHR Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research & Care East of England and NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre, Cambridge, CB2 8AH UK
| | - Pasco Fearon
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, 19 Torrington Place, London, WC1E 7HB UK
| | - Jeannette Brodbeck
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Berne, 8 Fabrikstrasse, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Michael Moutoussis
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, 12 Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG UK
| | - NSPN Consortium
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Herchel Smith Building, Forvie Site, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 0SZ UK
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, UK
| | - Ray Dolan
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, 12 Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG UK
| | - Peter Fonagy
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT UK
| | - Edward T. Bullmore
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Herchel Smith Building, Forvie Site, Hills Road, Cambridge, CB2 0SZ UK
- NIHR Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research & Care East of England and NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre, Cambridge, CB2 8AH UK
| | - Ian M. Goodyer
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Douglas House, 18b Trumpington Road, Cambridge, CB2 8AH UK
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Sedgwick O, Young S, Baumeister D, Greer B, Das M, Kumari V. Neuropsychology and emotion processing in violent individuals with antisocial personality disorder or schizophrenia: The same or different? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Aust N Z J Psychiatry 2017; 51:1178-1197. [PMID: 28992741 DOI: 10.1177/0004867417731525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To assess whether there are shared or divergent (a) cognitive and (b) emotion processing characteristics among violent individuals with antisocial personality disorder and/or schizophrenia, diagnoses which are commonly encountered at the interface of mental disorder and violence. Cognition and emotion processing are incorporated into models of violence, and thus an understanding of these characteristics within and between disorder groups may help inform future models and therapeutic targets. METHODS Relevant databases (OVID, Embase, PsycINFO) were searched to identify suitable literature. Meta-analyses comparing cognitive function in violent schizophrenia and antisocial personality disorder to healthy controls were conducted. Neuropsychological studies not comparing these groups to healthy controls, and emotion processing studies, were evaluated qualitatively. RESULTS Meta-analyses indicated lower IQ, memory and executive function in both violent schizophrenia and antisocial personality disorder groups compared to healthy controls. The degree of deficit was consistently larger in violent schizophrenia. Both antisocial personality disorder and violent schizophrenia groups had difficulties in aspects of facial affect recognition, although theory of mind results were less conclusive. Psychopathic traits related positively to experiential emotion deficits across the two disorders. Very few studies explored comorbid violent schizophrenia and antisocial personality disorder despite this being common in clinical practice. CONCLUSION There are qualitatively similar, but quantitatively different, neuropsychological and emotion processing deficits in violent individuals with schizophrenia and antisocial personality disorder which could be developed into transdiagnostic treatment targets for violent behaviour. Future research should aim to characterise specific subgroups of violent offenders, including those with comorbid diagnoses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ottilie Sedgwick
- 1 Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.,2 Broadmoor Hospital, West London Mental Health Trust, Crowthorne, UK
| | - Susan Young
- 2 Broadmoor Hospital, West London Mental Health Trust, Crowthorne, UK.,3 Centre for Mental Health, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - David Baumeister
- 1 Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Ben Greer
- 2 Broadmoor Hospital, West London Mental Health Trust, Crowthorne, UK
| | - Mrigendra Das
- 2 Broadmoor Hospital, West London Mental Health Trust, Crowthorne, UK
| | - Veena Kumari
- 4 Research and Development, Sovereign Health Group, San Clemente, CA, USA
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Bertone MS, Diaz-Granados EA, Vallejos M, Muniello J. Differences in social cognition between male prisoners with antisocial personality or psychotic disorder. Int J Psychol Res (Medellin) 2017; 10:16-25. [PMID: 32612761 PMCID: PMC7110155 DOI: 10.21500/20112084.2903] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The objective of this work is to discriminate between different neurocognitive circuits involved in empathy, one of them linked to emotional processing and the other associated with cognitive function. This is evaluated through the use of neuropsychological tools (Hinting Task, Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test and Cambridge Mind Reading Test) empathic cognition and empathic emotion. In this study, 57 male prisoners were divided into three groups: psychotic patients (20), antisocial patients (17), and a control group (20). Patients with psychosis were found to have significantly lower scores than the antisocial and control groups in a social reasoning test, but using tests of emotional recognition, we found that both psychotic patients and antisocial subjects scored significantly lower than the control group.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matías Salvador Bertone
- University of Belgrano, Buenos Aires, Argentina. University of Belgrano Buenos Aires Argentina.,Vicepresidente Académico del Buro Internacional en Neurociencia Cognitiva Aplicada (BINCA), Buenos Aires, Argentina Buro Internacional en Neurociencia Cognitiva Aplicada (BINCA) Buenos Aires Argentina
| | | | - Miguel Vallejos
- University of Belgrano, Buenos Aires, Argentina. University of Belgrano Buenos Aires Argentina
| | - Jessica Muniello
- Ministry of Justice and DD.HH of the Argentine Nation, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Argentine Nation Buenos Aires Argentina
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Galland D, Tisserant I, Notardonato L. ["Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in forensic psychiatry: A review"]. Encephale 2016; 43:268-272. [PMID: 27637873 DOI: 10.1016/j.encep.2016.04.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2016] [Revised: 04/18/2016] [Accepted: 04/25/2016] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common and challenging childhood neurobehavioral disorders. ADHD may have behavioral consequences and involvements in minor and serious crimes. Our work aims to establish links between ADHD and forensic psychiatry. METHODS A review of international scientific literature concerning the relationship between ADHD and forensic psychiatry was conducted using the PudMed electronic database. We used the Mesh terms: "attention deficit hyperactivity disorder" and "forensic psychiatry". We also used the "related articles" function of PubMed, the bibliography of selected articles and the Google Scholar database to identify possible additional papers. RESULTS The prevalence of ADHD in prison populations may vary but remain higher than those found in the general population. Violence committed by a person with ADHD seems to be against other persons rather than property offences. Reactive-impulsive violence seems to be more prevalent than pro-active instrumental violence. The existence of ADHD does not appear as a risk factor of recidivism. The violence risk may be increased by the occurrence of comorbidities as conduct disorders and mental deficiency. There may exist a preferential association between ADHD and antisocial personality disorder or substance abuse which both increase the risk of violence. DISCUSSION To put in perspective forensic psychiatry and ADHD allowed us to identify typology of violence, epidemiological aspect of ADHD in a prison environment and comorbidities involved in the risk of violence. This research permits to precise elements of prevention, diagnosis and assistance in the management of violent behaviour in ADHD and in expert practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- D Galland
- EPSM des Flandres, 790, route de Locre, 59270 Bailleul, France.
| | - I Tisserant
- EPSM des Flandres, 790, route de Locre, 59270 Bailleul, France
| | - L Notardonato
- EPSM des Flandres, 790, route de Locre, 59270 Bailleul, France
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Bora E, Pantelis C. Meta-analysis of social cognition in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): comparison with healthy controls and autistic spectrum disorder. Psychol Med 2016; 46:699-716. [PMID: 26707895 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291715002573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 161] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Impairment in social cognition is an established finding in autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Emerging evidence suggests that attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) might be also associated with deficits in theory of mind (ToM) and emotion recognition. However, there are inconsistent findings, and it has been debatable whether such deficits persist beyond childhood and how similar social cognitive deficits are in ADHD v. ASD. METHOD We conducted a meta-analysis of social cognition, including emotion recognition and ToM, studies in ADHD compared with healthy controls and ASD. The current meta-analysis involved 44 studies comparing ADHD (n = 1999) with healthy controls (n = 1725) and 17 studies comparing ADHD (n = 772) with ASD (n = 710). RESULTS Facial and vocal emotion recognition (d = 0.40-0.44) and ToM (d = 0.43) abilities were significantly impaired in ADHD. The most robust facial emotion recognition deficits were evident in anger and fear. Social cognitive deficits were either very subtle (emotion recognition) or non-significant (ToM) in adults with ADHD. Deficits in social cognition, especially ToM, were significantly more pronounced in ASD compared with ADHD. General cognitive impairment has contributed to social cognitive deficits in ADHD. CONCLUSIONS Performance of individuals with ADHD on social cognition lies intermediate between ASD and healthy controls. However, developmental trajectories of social cognition probably differ between ADHD and ASD as social cognitive deficits in ADHD might be improving with age in most individuals. There is a need for studies investigating a potential subtype of ADHD with persistent social cognitive deficits and exploring longitudinal changes in social cognition during development.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Bora
- Department of Psychiatry,Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre,University of Melbourne and Melbourne Health,Carlton South,Victoria 3053,Australia
| | - C Pantelis
- Department of Psychiatry,Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre,University of Melbourne and Melbourne Health,Carlton South,Victoria 3053,Australia
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Gillespie SM, Rotshtein P, Wells LJ, Beech AR, Mitchell IJ. Psychopathic traits are associated with reduced attention to the eyes of emotional faces among adult male non-offenders. Front Hum Neurosci 2015; 9:552. [PMID: 26500524 PMCID: PMC4595655 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2015.00552] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2015] [Accepted: 09/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Psychopathic traits are linked with impairments in emotional facial expression recognition. These impairments may, in part, reflect reduced attention to the eyes of emotional faces. Although reduced attention to the eyes has been noted among children with conduct problems and callous-unemotional traits, similar findings are yet to be found in relation to psychopathic traits among adult male participants. Here we investigated the relationship of primary (selfish, uncaring) and secondary (impulsive, antisocial) psychopathic traits with attention to the eyes among adult male non-offenders during an emotion recognition task. We measured the number of fixations, and overall dwell time, on the eyes, and the mouth of male and female faces showing the six basic emotions at varying levels of intensity. We found no relationship of primary or secondary psychopathic traits with recognition accuracy. However, primary psychopathic traits were associated with a reduced number of fixations, and lower overall dwell time, on the eyes relative to the mouth across expressions, intensity, and sex. Furthermore, the relationship of primary psychopathic traits with attention to the eyes of angry and fearful faces was influenced by the sex and intensity of the expression. We also showed that a greater number of fixations on the eyes, relative to the mouth, were associated with increased accuracy for angry and fearful expression recognition. These results are the first to show effects of psychopathic traits on attention to the eyes of emotional faces in an adult male sample, and may support amygdala based accounts of psychopathy. These findings may also have methodological implications for clinical studies of emotion recognition.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Pia Rotshtein
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham Birmingham, UK
| | - Laura J Wells
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham Birmingham, UK
| | - Anthony R Beech
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham Birmingham, UK
| | - Ian J Mitchell
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham Birmingham, UK
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Gillespie SM, Rotshtein P, Satherley RM, Beech AR, Mitchell IJ. Emotional expression recognition and attribution bias among sexual and violent offenders: a signal detection analysis. Front Psychol 2015; 6:595. [PMID: 26029137 PMCID: PMC4426331 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00595] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2014] [Accepted: 04/22/2015] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Research with violent offenders has consistently shown impaired recognition of other’s facial expressions of emotion. However, the extent to which similar problems can be observed among sexual offenders remains unknown. Using a computerized task, we presented sexual and violent offenders, and non-offenders, with male and female expressions of anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise, morphed with neutral expressions at varying levels of intensity (10, 55, and 90% expressive). Based on signal detection theory, we used hit rates and false alarms to calculate the sensitivity index d-prime (d′) and criterion (c) for each emotional expression. Overall, sexual offenders showed reduced sensitivity to emotional expressions across intensity, sex, and type of expression, compared with non-offenders, while both sexual and violent offenders showed particular reduced sensitivity to fearful expressions. We also observed specific effects for high (90%) intensity female faces, with sexual offenders showing reduced sensitivity to anger compared with non-offenders and violent offenders, and reduced sensitivity to disgust compared with non-offenders. Furthermore, both sexual and violent offenders showed impaired sensitivity to high intensity female fearful expressions compared with non-offenders. Violent offenders also showed a higher criterion for classifying moderate and high intensity male expressions as fearful, indicative of a more conservative response style, compared with angry, happy, or sad. These results suggest that both types of offender show problems in emotion recognition, and may have implications for understanding the inhibition of violent and sexually violent behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven M. Gillespie
- *Correspondence: Steven M. Gillespie, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
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